Rep. Leonard Lance (R-7th Dist.) is trumpeting his proposal to expand access to mental health services. Lance said the aim is to "serve as many Americans as possible, given that mental health is a significant component of the larger gun issue."

Newtown changed how we value services that just might prevent another deranged individual from a violent outburst. Some states are even reversing cuts they implemented during the recession.

Lance’s bill would cost $100 million a year, he said, and would provide $2 million to each state annually if they provide 24-hour psychiatric care, among other things. Lance calls it the Excellence in Mental Health Act.

Hold the parade and fireworks. For one thing, Lance’s proposal, although a good idea, doesn’t deliver nearly enough money the states will need to do this right. In Lance’s own accounting, there are 2,000 community mental health centers across the country serving roughly 8 million patients a year. Two million dollars a year will not provide "excellence" in mental health to states dealing with chronic budget shortfalls.

And the proposal is disingenuous for other reasons, all having to do with his basic economic philosophy. His record tells the full story: He has voted consistently to repeal health care reform, although it represents the best hope for finally delivering mental health services at affordable cost to the widest number of people.

Anyone who has sought psychiatric help or psychotherapy can tell you about the higher deductibles and the caps on annual and lifetime coverage that are abysmally low. Obamacare mandates that psychiatric illnesses be covered by insurance the same as physical illnesses. That’s a great leap forward. Yet Lance would keep the miserable status quo.

Even more damning is his support for the budget proposed last year by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.). Ryan’s vision would shrink government and takes a meat ax to discretionary spending, deeply affecting the ability of the Department of Health and Human Services to fund mental health services, including to traumatized veterans.

So as much as we would like to hail Lance’s bill, the reality is that his truncated vision of government and desire to balance the budget at the expense of human needs would in fact undermine excellence in mental health.